After homering on Opening Day, Carson Benge went into a 2-for-30 slump that saw his batting average tumble to .091 on April 7. But whether it was by faith or necessity, Carlos Mendoza stuck with him, even batting him leadoff at times to try to get him going.
The rookie is showing signs of meeting the potential that the Mets saw when they made him the 19th pick of the 2024 draft out of Oklahoma State.
Benge came up in the fourth inning Tuesday with the Mets up 3-0 over the Nationals after two runs scored on a Marcus Semien grounder that third baseman Jorbit Vivas misplayed. With the Nats reeling, and runners on second and third, Benge didn’t let them off the hook. He jumped on Zack Littell‘s first pitch and lined the 90 mph fastball for an opposite-field single to bring in two.
He went from first to third on a Ronny Mauricio single, scored on a Bo Bichette sacrifice fly and Juan Soto homered to put the cherry on top of a seven-run inning in the 8-0 victory that snapped a three-game losing streak.
“After the Marcus ground ball, everybody took great at-bats and getting base hits,” Soto said. “It was really cool to see.”
Mendoza said lately he’s noticed a difference in the 23-year-old’s swing.
“Short, aggressive, getting the barrel to ball, using the whole field,” the manager said. “Not only pulling the baseball, but going the other way. Just hitting line drives and not missing pitches. Like on time for the fastball. And it’s just good to see it.”
Benge went 2-for-4, pulling a single to right in the sixth, for his second straight two-hit game. He is 7-for-16 in his last five with a home run, a double and one strikeout. His batting average has jumped more than 100 points since April 7 and his slash line is at .195/.258/.293/.551.
